


Pride

by DinoDina



Category: Primeval
Genre: Bisexuality, Coming Out, Established Relationship, F/M, Miscommunication, Pride, Very Minor, and an extra surprise at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-21 20:14:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30027228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DinoDina/pseuds/DinoDina
Summary: Jess and Becker have been dating for almost a year, but there's one thing Jess hasn't told him. And it's a bit too late now - the Pride parade is coming up, and so is their anniversary. Too much time has passed for her coming out to not be awkward.
Relationships: Hilary James Becker/Jess Parker





	Pride

Jess checked the weather forecast every morning. Her phone and computer were accurate enough but if there was ever any doubt—and there often was, with how overcast the sky tended to be in the morning and how volatile London weather was—she could always hack into various weather services and make up her mind about the sometimes-conflicting prognosis.

Nothing stood out this morning, though the sun seemed to taught her outside the window, and Jess dressed ready for a warm day. Skirt, sandals, short-sleeves and a cardigan for the ARC's chill. She put her hair up and donned a bracelet and matching earrings. She made a face in the mirror for good measure, because getting ready for her job always made Jess feel a little bit _too_ much like an adult.

All good.

"Cute."

She turned around with a laugh and lightly slapped her boyfriend's chest. "Don't be mean."

He laughed. "I'm not being mean, I think you're cute."

"You had that—" Jess waved her hand at his face "—smirk on." He laughed. " _That's_ the one! You never mean that I'm cute when you say that."

"I always mean that you're cute when I say that." He snaked his arms around her waist and pecked a kiss on her cheek. "But you look completely impractical, Jessica."

" _Jessica_ ," she mocked. "You know, _Hilary_ , I can do that, too."

He made a face.

"See!" Jess threw an arm up triumphantly. "It doesn't feel that nice."

"Alright, you win."

She 'won' every morning, but Jess always liked when he said it. Her _boyfriend_ , taking her word for things. It was nice.

"Besides," she continued, "we've been together almost a year, you're not allowed to be mean to me on our anniversary week."

"Only gentle ribbing."

"Only gentle ribbing," Jess echoed. She went up on tiptoe—even in the heels—and kissed his cheek. "Ready?"

Becker nodded. He was dressed and ready, too, hair just slightly wet from his morning shower, already dressed in black fatigues and combat boots. She wouldn't put it past him to already have a gun on his person, but that was just part of his routine. Just like she had her makeup and pop music playing in the background, Becker had his macho persona, which... really wasn't that macho at all. She'd seen him dancing around the bathroom when she was getting ready outside, he wasn't fooling anyone.

"Getting breakfast on the way in?"

Jess nodded. They weren't living together, not yet—and the fact that there _was_ a yet to hope for always threw her for a second, because she had spent _so long_ pining, and now here they were—and sometimes made breakfast together, usually pancakes with strawberries or something more practical like oatmeal, always spruced up with sugar and fresh fruit. But it was also really nice, especially now that the weather was improving, to go into a cafe, _holding hands_ , and get coffee and pastries together.

Becker dropped a kiss on the top of her head as he walked past to grab the keys. They were at his flat for the moment, and he was a perfect gentleman. That, and he always complained about Jess's tiny car. It wasn't her fault—he was just too tall.

"I know what you're thinking."

Jess laughed at his mock-glower. "I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

They walked into the ARC hand-in-hand, and _no, they didn't bring breakfast for anyone else, sorry Matt, you shouldn't have made fun of us yesterday_.

Were they still in the honeymoon period, like Abby always said?

Maybe. Jess didn't think so. They'd been together for a year, after all, and had gotten together after waiting for so long, that they'd passed all the awkward silences and stages of getting to know each other. Most of them, anyway. She now knew what Becker looked like on his days off, and it involved surprisingly colorful graphic t-shirts. He knew about her collection of practical shoes, which was kept so far back in her closet, none of her previous flatmates had _ever_ seen them.

It was nice.

It was warm.

Becker was everything she's been attracted to and more, kind and attentive and funny, and... well, perfect. Maybe they were in a honeymoon period. Jess always smiled when she remembered that Becker was her boyfriend—or maybe that was just the fact that their first anniversary was coming up.

It was like living in a romantic comedy, only there were dinosaurs sometimes.

It was very close to perfect.

Except—and Jess didn't let this mar her smile, she _didn't_ —for one thing. She sighed inwardly. It had been so long. She'd known Becker for years now, had seen him at so many low points; and he, in turn, had seen her scared and angry and hopeless. _Why_ hadn't she told him?

And what was she supposed to do?

Jess loved her outfit, light blue and yellow with pink flower accents, and had so many more summer outfits planned. She reused some from previous years, and came up with others as she went, and now that it was almost always warm outside, she was happier than ever, and yet.

She had other outfits, too, ones she'd tried not to wear, because what if Becker knew?

Outfits inspired by pride flags, purses with pins clipped to them, friends she'd met through various organizations and strangers she'd hung out with once at a festival only to meet them once more in bars and getting to know them.

It wasn't like the queer community in London was _small_. But it overlapped, and she _loved it_ , and she hadn't _told_ Becker because she hadn't thought of it. She hadn't felt the need because she thought he'd known, and then, with every day, it seemed that he didn't.

Jess wasn't ashamed of her bisexuality, not at all, but there had been boyfriends before, none of whom had lasted over a month, who _had_ had a problem with it—and Becker wouldn't be like that, she knew, but what _if_...

She had loved him for too long to find out now. She was scared.

She was so happy.

And she was so scared.

* * *

It was summer, and summer at the ARC meant that whenever Becker had to chase dinosaurs, he showered afterwards. Summer at the ARC meant extra work for Jess's assistant, who had to take over when she took her break to ogle her boyfriend.

Summer in general meant picnics and missing out on beach trips because she was needed in London. It meant walks in the city which were fantastic one minute, and way too hot the next. It meant finally catching up with old friends during the lunch breaks they now chose to spend in cafes rather than cooped up in warm offices.

Summer meant Pride.

The glitter, the music, the noise, the spectacle. She loved it all. She had heels that were supportive and colorful and deceptively tall. Her feet didn't get tired and her makeup didn't wear off or run. She had extra feather boas to give to friends when they forgot, and she had glitter that would reappear for months afterwards.

The previous year, she'd spent Pride tagging along with her friends who were in relationships, and they were _adorable_ , and yet she'd wanted more. It had only been a week later that she and Becker had finally gone on their first date.

And now Pride was coming up once more.

Half of Jess's brain was focused on Becker, shirtless, right across the room. The other half was still panicking.

Becker sent over a small crooked smile.

Alright. Only a quarter of her brain was panicking now.

Jess sighed, now with love instead of hopelessness. That was why she loved him.

* * *

"Do you have any plans for next weekend?" Jess asked when they were sitting on Becker's sofa later that evening, a film playing in front of them—Audrey Hepburn had just figured out who had murdered her husband—and the remains of dinner on the coffee table.

Becker hummed. "Yeah. That okay?"

"Yeah." Jess tried not to let out a relieved breath. "Some friends want to get together, I just wanted to—"

Becker nodded. "Me, too, if you can believe it."

"Of course I can, you're very likable."

He scoffed.

Jess twisted to sit on her knees instead of under his arm. "You _are_." She kissed his nose. "See? Likable _and_ adorable."

Becker responded, and she did, too, and Audrey's romantic ending was drowned out by their continued teasing. Which was fine. There was a reason they'd chosen to watch _Charade_ —it was fun and flirty and fast-paced, and it was so familiar they didn't need to watch it at this point.

They had _routines_. Jess hadn't ever had a relationship for this long, and friends didn't count because she'd lived with Abby and Connor for far longer than with anyone but her parents, and the relationship between her and Becker was starting to feel just like that.

He reached for her in his sleep. Unconsciously—he wasn't so free with his touch and movement while awake, and certainly not in public beyond holding hands. He was so much more open. Jess had very little control over her sleeping positions—she'd been told by many people, mostly her mum, that she slept like a toddler, spreading out over the whole bed—but always made sure to leave a hand available for Becker to take in the middle of the night.

His nose scrunched up in a frown when Jess mentioned it, but it was _adorable_. Bollocks to Mr. Macho Soldier Man, but the frown was adorable too.

* * *

With Becker at his own flat, Jess got up and got ready alone. They didn't spend all their nights together, but just enough that it felt weird to be alone. Abby and Connor had moved out just before she'd gotten together with Becker, too, so she hadn't truly had the flat to herself in months.

She sent a good morning text and received one back, and sent a flirty selfie before she put on makeup for Pride.

Her friends were picking her up for brunch in less than an hour, but Jess was already ready. Between Becker and her experience at the ARC, she could put on any elaborate outfit within a few minutes. She relished surprising new recruits with that—yes, Jess was girly and happy, but there was more to her, and while she didn't want everyone to know the full story, she loved giving little hints and throwing them off their rhythm.

"Diabolical," Becker had whispered one night when she'd shared this, both of them tipsy and hardy dressed from an impulsive game of strip poker.

She made a face in the mirror to check that the glitter would stay in place. It did. But… no, there was definitely not enough of it.

Jess added more and bounced back on her heels when she was done.

She couldn't wait.

She hadn't been outside, hadn't even seen her friends yet, but there was something electric in the air the morning of the pride parade. The stalls and people would be out for hours, and exhaustion wouldn't even begin to set in by the time the parade itself would start—she was ready to run and dance and drag her friends along.

Unable to sit still, Jess put on some music and shimmied around the flat, tidying up what she saw and wiping away dust from the counters and windowsills. She opened the window and let the sun stream in, and was glad that this morning wasn't like several years ago, when the clouds had converged on the city and they'd spent the day trying not to shiver even as they refused to put on jackets and cover their Pride getup.

* * *

Being the shortest, Jess sat in the middle of the backseat, jumping higher than her friends when the car went over uneven pavement and being thrown sideways on turns even though she was securely buckled in.

Sarah, who was driving, apologized the first few times, but she had _nothing_ on Matt when they were rushing to an anomaly site, or on Connor in general. This was child's play.

"I'm fine," she said, laughing, to Sarah's girlfriend Jenny, and threw herself at Pen, who had sat on her right but had been holding their boas and jackets and had thus been unavailable for a hug.

"I've missed you guys!"

"Adorable," Sarah teased, but accepted her own hug. It was well known that Jess was affectionate, just like it was known that Sarah liked to talk big but betrayed herself with excessive mother-hen tendencies.

Kind of like Becker.

"She's thinking of him again," Pen warned.

Jess grinned even as she blushed. "I'm allowed!"

"She is," Jenny agreed, "did you know they've been together almost a year?"

"I didn't!" Sarah made a shocked expression. "Jess, you should have _told_ us!"

There was no use telling them not to tease, because that would mean admitting that she _had_ gushed about Becker often, and she couldn't agree because the teasing wouldn't end.

Jess did the next best thing and pointed at a nearby cafe. "The coffee's half-off!"

That worked.

Jess barely managed to follow them and was almost hit by the door as they entered ahead of her.

At least their teasing didn't extend to preventing Jess from getting coffee, too. She was more of a hot chocolate person, much to the surprise of anyone who kept her company on night shifts— but it was impossible to avoid coffee at the ARC. She didn't have a _taste_ for it, but it was always fun to surprise her friends by ordering an adult drink.

Jess scoffed when they, indeed, pointed them out. "We're the same age!"

"And we're adults!"

She hid her grimace behind the takeout cup. _Yum_ , coffee. Just as bitter as she'd imagined, even with all the flavoring.

She was just happy that Becker didn't like coffee, either, though he could tolerate it much better. Something about being a soldier and having to drink other people's burnt instant coffee without complaining because they were his superiors.

"Before we lose Jess to poison control—"

"She's not going to call poison control on _coffee_!"

"Don't make promises I can't keep."

Jenny punched her arm jokingly. "Don't threaten Pen."

"Pen can defend herself, thank you very much." Pen turned a triumphant face to Jess. "But Jen's right. Don't threaten me, I'm sensitive."

"You got kicked out of a bar two weeks ago!"

"Irrelevant!"

Jess forced another sip. It wasn't _that_ bad. She just... wanted something sweet. But, she had to admit, coffee helped sometimes. Especially because she was expected to lead this gaggle, which would be joined later in the day by more people. There was a reason Jess's job involved coordinating dinosaur-wranglers—she had once managed a group of drunk uni students around London while being two years younger than them. Anomalies were _nothing_ by comparison.

* * *

Two hours later, Jess didn't regret the coffee at all. She was just slightly more hyper than usual—which explained why she thought she saw Becker's muscular silhouette about ten times around various stalls—and had a sharp eye on everyone in the six-person group. Sarah and Jenny broke off to look at various couple merchandise—matching shirts, earrings, airbrush tattoos, photo booths. Pen stayed close, tapping Jess on the shoulder to signal when she was stepping away to find something for her long-distance partner. Su and Joan, who had joined later, were mostly responsible for their distractible partner Mary, but Jess kept them all in sight anyway. They were dressed brightly, coordinating with the rest of them in signature boas, but individual in the rest of their attire.

Jess, easily the most feminine of the group, was almost Jenny's height in her heels, which—thank you very much to the voice of Becker that appeared occasionally in Jess's head to criticize her footwear—had both a proper ankle support and allowed her to see above the crowd.

She wrangled her friends away from the stalls to go to lunch, then coordinated water breaks. They had wanted to watch some performers, so Jess kept an eye on her watch, and made sure she knew where the benches were in case anyone needed a break.

And, with all that, she managed to have fun.

There was a butterfly painted on her left cheek, and a free sample of body paint on her shoulder in the simple stripes of the bisexual flag. She had come prepared with spray-on sunscreen and periodically called over her friends for reapplication —she was not repeating the mistake of her first Pride, after which she'd come home bright red and spent the next several days trying to fend off her friends' teasing for forgetting that she had been out in the sun. She'd worn a shirt with slits in the sleeves, and when the sunburn was gone, the tan line remained for three months afterwards.

No, Jess was a prepared adult who wouldn't let anything stand in her—or her friends'—way of getting the most out of the day.

Currently, she was sitting on the bench working away at an ice-cream cone. Strawberry, just how she liked it, and the cone had been dipped in chocolate and decorated with sprinkles. For the festival, the sprinkles were available in all different flag colors—it matched her outfit, which was a mess of blue, pink, and purple.

Sarah and Jenny were on the grass a bit away, feeding each other bits of what might have been candy in between bites of ice-cream. Jess had read everything she could before coming, but the details were too much to keep track of, especially since her friends were being all gross and couple-y.

"I think it's popcorn," Pen said when Jess asked.

Jess titled her head and could see where the idea had come from. "Makes sense."

"So," Mary nudged her from behind, "how does it feel to finally not be the only single person here?"

"Fantastic!"

While it was true that she couldn't share this with Becker, being around so much love had always made her feel wistful—not while celebrating, but upon returning home. Jess loved being with her friends, and didn't spend all of her free time thinking about her boyfriend, but it was nice knowing that they already had plans for Monday. She had always liked romance and was finally getting to experience it for real.

"I'm glad."

"Thanks, Joan."

Jess reached back to pat her cheek—bless smudge-free makeup!—and turned away when someone yelled out that they had brought more water. Who _they_ were, Jess didn't know, but she looked around and noticed that the person yelling was only a short distance away by one of the stalls, and there were already people milling around to get it.

"Perfect." Jess was the only one done eating, so she stood up and straightened her skirt. "Water for everyone?"

"Oh, yes, please!"

She patted Pen's arm and shook her head when she offered to come along—her friends were talking, and she had a bag, she would be fine carrying everything—and made her way off the small picnic set-up.

Jess was good at maneuvering through crowds due to her height and agility practice from walking in heels, and she smiled brightly at everyone who made eye contact as she skirted around them. The atmosphere was infectious—she grinned at someone who had the same butterfly design as hers on their cheek—and the sun was still up. It was a perfect day.

It got even better when she was handed cold water bottles, condensation dripping on their sides; she was not a fan of cold water, usually—in fact, she preferred juice—but on a day like this, it was necessary.

Jess thanked the person giving them out and stood off to the side, balancing them awkwardly in her arms. She jutted out one hip and rested her bag on it, holding it open with one hand, and with the other, held the straps aside. One fell into the bag and a bottle got stuck on it, and Jess had to lean over far over her comfort level to get the strap out.

She was methodical in this, used to packing far too much on trips and keeping track of everyone's things on picnics and other outings, but it was far from easy.

At last, she situated the bottles comfortably enough that they wouldn't cause the bag to dig too painfully into her shoulder and that they wouldn't hit her side as she walked.

"Perfect," Jess said to herself, pleased because it had been a while since she'd had to juggle so much in her hands, and stepped forward into the crowd.

She took two steps, and only then looked up to check if there were people around to watch out for.

Too late.

There was a person inches away, tall, looking off to the side, talking to someone, and all Jess had time to do was brace herself for the inevitable collision.

She didn't fall, but only just, and there were hands around her upper arms, keeping her upright, as the person reached out—seeing her, just as she saw them, at the very last second—to steady her.

"Sorry."

"No, it was my fault."

 _Wait a minute_. Jess looked up, mouth already opening in surprise. _She knew that voice_.

"Becker?"

Their eyes met.

"Jess?"

Someone brushed past her back, pushing her forward into Becker. Who was wearing his usual dark jeans and a shirt she'd never seen before in a pattern she was intimately familiar with. Blue, pink, and purple—just like hers.

If she'd known how easily it would be to get Becker to wear colors _and_ a matching outfit to hers, she'd have come out to him sooner!

Jess closed her mouth and swallowed against a laugh bubbling up in her throat. "We should get out of the crowd."

"Good idea." Keeping a hold on her arm so they wouldn't get separated, Becker looked around and paused. "I just... I said I was getting water, I should... actually do that."

"I'll come with you." Jess gestured to her bag. "Me, too."

"Right."

They walked back to the stall. Jess threw the person distributing water a smile when their eyes met—she'd seen them somewhere before, maybe one of the parties Sarah and Jenny threw a few times a year to keep track of all their friends?—and waited for Becker as he balanced the bottles into his own bag.

"Where are your friends?"

Jess pointed to the grassy area where she was sure they were still eating ice-cream. "Becker?"

"Hmm?"

"Do I eat ice-cream too quickly?"

Becker blinked. She smiled; she'd suddenly wondered, but she _loved_ catching him off-guard. "I think so."

She hummed, too. "Thanks. What about yours?"

Becker laughed and pointed to some people sitting on the other end of the same small field. They could see both groups from the stalls, but there were enough people between them that it was no wonder Jess hadn't noticed Becker earlier. Still, it was a little ridiculous.

"Wow." Jess swallowed against another laugh. She wanted to, but if she started, she didn't think she'd be able to stop, and they still needed to have a somewhat serious conversation. "I…"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"Oh." Jess's mouth remained slightly open, and she blinked. "I… I didn't tell you either."

"I didn't mean to—"

"I'm sorry." A breath, almost a laugh, escaped her. "Sorry. It just never came up. And then so much time had passed…"

"It seemed too late." He shook his head incredulously. "'Hi, Jess, have I mentioned I'm bisexual?' I thought you'd either laugh or kick me out—not… not because of _you_ , it's just…"

"That's what happens." She nodded and stuck out her free hand in an over-exaggerated greeting. "Hi, Becker, have I mentioned I'm bisexual?"

"Never."

They shook hands.

"Yeah." She looked up, squinting against the sun, and lightly bumped Becker's shoulder with her own. "At least it took us less than a year."

He bumped back. "We're definitely not telling anyone about this, right?"

"Not a soul!" _But…_ "Do you want to meet my friends?"

Becker nodded—and then, she would meet his, and not a single person would know that this meeting hadn't been _completely planned_ and that their clothes hadn't been meticulously coordinated beforehand.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Primeval fandom! This is one of my most established headcanons, plus or minus the level of miscommunication.
> 
> Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think!


End file.
